• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • South Korean Brands Get Bigger Share of January Sales
  • Investors Unfazed as Tesla Reveals New SEC Probe
  • GM and Lithium Americas Partner for U.S.-Sourced Lithium
  • First Look: 2024 Range Rover Velar
  • Q&A: Mazda North America’s CEO Jeff Guyton
  • Tesla Owners Stung by Capitalism
  • Mercedes Updates GLE Models for 2024 Model Year
  • First Look: Mazda’s Bigger, More Luxurious New CX-90
  • GM Net Income Rises for Q4 But Falls for Full Year 2022
  • GMC Launches Production of Hummer SUV; Needs Until 2024 to Fill Outstanding Orders
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • A Week With: 2023 Kia Niro EV
    • A Week With: 2023 Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R 4x4 Super Crew
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis Electrified G80 AWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Land Rover Defender 110 V-8
    • First Drive: 2023 Honda Pilot TrailSport
    • A Week With: 2023 Jaguar F-Type R Coupe
    • A Week With: 2023 GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis GV60 Performance
    • A Week With: 2023 Chevrolet Suburban Z71
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > news > Automakers > GM Investing $24M in Ft. Wayne Plant to Boost Pickup Production

        GM Investing $24M in Ft. Wayne Plant to Boost Pickup Production

        Move follows major investment in Michigan HD truck plant.

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        May 30, 2019
        GM Chairman Mary Barra talks with workers at the company's Fort Wayne truck plant where it plans to invest $24 million to expand production.

        With pickup sales continuing to skyrocket, despite the overall slowdown in the U.S. automotive market, General Motors said Thursday it will invest $24 million to boost production at the Fort Wayne, Indiana plant that produces two of its most profitable trucks.

        The move will not only boost output of the full-size Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra models, but may also offer an opportunity for some of the workers displaced by the closure of two other GM assembly plants in Michigan and Ohio.

        Business News!

        “The team here at Fort Wayne has done an outstanding job helping us satisfy customers throughout this launch,” GM CEO Mary Barra said during an announcement at the Fort Wayne plant which currently employs about 4,230 hourly workers.

        The factory was updated little more than a year ago to handle the latest generation of the Silverado and Sierra trucks which debuted for the current model year.

        (GMC tightens up premium segment with 2020 Sierra 1500. Click Here for the story.)

        Strong sales of the GMC Sierra, above, and its Chevrolet sibling, the Silverado, drove the $24 million investment in the Fort Wayne plant.

        Both were finalists for the 2019 North American Truck of the Year, though they were bested by the Ram 1500 that was also all-new for 2019. That said, demand has skyrocketed since the new models rolled out, combined sales increasing 20% during the first quarter compared to the same three-month period last year.

        “Our product ramp-up was very smooth and the quality has been exceptional,” CEO Barra said. “Crew cab sales have been very strong, and we are expanding customer choice with new models, more cab choices and innovative new powertrains.”

        But with demand now outpacing supply, GM says it needs a further upgrade to the assembly line to permit it to further boost output. It is not saying, however, precisely how many more of the trucks it hopes to assemble at Fort Wayne once the project is completed.

        (Click Here for more about how strong sales of pricey pickups helped GM beat earnings estimate.)

        GM has invested $1.2 billion in the Indiana plant alone since 2015 as part of a broader push to update its truck line-up and boost production. In February, Barra helped pull the wraps off the new Chevy Silverado HD model at the automaker’s truck plant in Flint, Michigan, completing another major investment program.

        Mary Barra lauded employees at the Fort Wayne plant for keeping quality high while running a full speed to meet demand for the company's new pickups.

        Plans call for adding about 1,000 workers at the Flint factory. Many of those spots – as well as some of the jobs opening up in Fort Wayne – are being offered to workers displaced by the closure of assembly lines in Detroit and Lordstown, Ohio. GM has said that it already has found new assignments for about 1,350 of the roughly 2,800 hourly workers affected by those shutdowns. Some of the others are expected to opt for retirement, however, rather than reassignment. It is not clear if that will result in the automaker actually opening up for new hires.

        Following the announcement about the Fort Wayne project, United Auto Workers Vice President and Director of the GM department Terry Dittes said in a statement, “General Motors investment will ensure job security and continued growth in manufacturing and the economy for UAW members in Indiana, their families and their community.”

        (For a first look at the new GMC Sierra HD, Click Here.)

        GM has also been expanding production of some of its SUV and CUV products to take advantage of the shift to light trucks from sedans and coupes. It said last November that it was dropping a half-dozen passenger car models as it closes the Ohio and Michigan assembly lines, as well as a third factory in Ontario.

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published
        2023 Toyota Corolla Hatchback SE front REL

        South Korean Brands Get Bigger Share of January Sales

        Today
        Tesla Gigafactory Austin_01

        Investors Unfazed as Tesla Reveals New SEC Probe

        Today
        GM and Lithium Americas

        GM and Lithium Americas Partner for U.S.-Sourced Lithium

        Today

        One response to “GM Investing $24M in Ft. Wayne Plant to Boost Pickup Production”

        1. JAE says:
          June 3, 2019 at 1:31 pm

          That is good news concerning the jobs but I still worry of the D3 becoming solely truck / SUV makers, with one-two cars.

          Reply

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: